Who You Are
by PlotBunniesIncorporated
Summary: Toshiro has a secret that even he doesn't know about. Maybe it's about his never mentioned parents...or are they mentioned? IchiMatsu and MAYBE IchiHistu...maybe....
1. Prologue

**Muahaha, I have been abusing my poor readers haven't I. Yes, it's a Bleach fiction...for once...my first Bleach fic, EVER _ Well, nonetheless, I don't own Bleach. I'm working on some Inuyasha fics as well as rewriting some of my PoT and KKM fics!!!! XD Enjoy, if you can.**

**Who You Are**

Matsumoto sighed as she looked at her lover, Gin, tease their son. The little baby squealed unhappily as his pacifier was kept out of his reach. His tiny face wrinkled up, turning a bright red, and he let out a fierce wail. Rangiku walked over and snatched the wanted item from her cruel love and gave it to her son.

"Honestly Gin, stop teasing Toshiro."

The Fox chuckled, "Nah, he's too fun y'know?"

The orange haired woman frowned, "Fine. Tease him and when you can't calm him- don't run to me. I'm taking a nap." The normally cheerful woman, drained of energy from taking care of a new baby, dragged her feet into their bedroom and passed out onto the fluffy futon.

Gin looked at her retreating figure before smiling at his son, "Ne, Shiro-chan, your mother sure is scary when she's tired eh?"

Toshiro stared at his father with big turquoise eyes. He had a tuft of white hair that fell into his eye and he frowned at it before rubbing his eye with a chubby fist. A few gurgles and other baby sounds came from him and Gin's smile widened.

"Yeah I know… me too," He paused and lifted the small babe out of his crib, "Would'ya like t'see outside lil' Shiro?" He opened the sliding door and stepped out into the slightly chilled air. It was March now and still slightly cold from winter. Toshiro snuggled closer to his father's warm chest and drifted to sleep, taking solace in the cold air.

Gin opened his red eyes and peered at the sleeping child. 'His spiritual pressure is so calm in the cold. Interesting,' He grinned broadly and enjoyed the quiet.

--

Yamamoto looked at the tiny child that peered at him, a challenge reflected in those odd eyes.

"Moo-moo, ibns nap poo," Toshiro babbled as his tiny fingers grasped the old man's beard.

Before him, Rangiku and Gin stood- both with impassive faces as they contemplated what to do.

"Sir, we understand how important this mission is, but, we have a son now," Rangiku rose slightly to pull Toshiro's hand away gently.

"I understand, but you two are the best people for this mission. Is there any family that could watch over little Toshiro until then?"

"I don't have any…Gin?"

The smiling fox, who wasn't smiling, thought for a moment, "In West Rukongai, there is an old lady, a close friend of my family. She used to watch me when I was a child."

"What is her name?"

"Kohana Hitsugaya."

"I'll leave you to settle this, but you have a week."

"Thank you," The parents rose and bowed. Gin took hold of Toshiro and they left. As soon as they left the room, Rangiku stopped and wiped her eyes.

"Ran-chan," Gin said as he stood by her.

"It isn't fair! You heard Saitaicho; he said that this mission could take at least five years. That's five years of Toshiro's life we'll miss, AT LEAST. That means that we'll miss even more. He hasn't even spoken his first word and I doubt that he'll do that in a week."

"We'll be back though, so y'see, we'll miss a bit of his life, but not all of't."

"Still," Rangiku pouted as she hugged Toshiro.

--

"Don't you worry, I'll take good care of him," Kohana smiled warmly as she looked at the wiggling bundle of energy.

The fairly new parents looked apprehensive at leaving their child but they knew had no choice.

Two hours, a few dozen hugs, a hundred kisses, and a thousand tears later, Rangiku and Gin were on their way back Yamamoto. Kohana set Toshiro down and went to work preparing some formula for him and soup for her.

"Oh Little Toshiro, you poor little baby," She looked at him with pity. It would be up to her to teach little Toshiro Ichimaru all about his parents.

The next few months were exciting as Kohana received the thrill of having a baby in the house again. Really, the last baby she took care of was Gin and now she was taking care of _his_ child….she had NEVER felt so old before.

Toshiro's first word came out of his mouth four days after his parents left and it was 'ice'. It was an odd first word; normally babies would say 'mama' or 'papa'. But, Toshiro had seen some snow cones and pointed to it, babbling on and on until he started shouting, "ICE! ICE!"

Kohana also found it odd that he was speaking so early.

When Toshiro was nine months old, he began to half-crawl half-walk. Once again, she was surprised at his rate of development.

When Toshiro was a year and two months old, Unohana-taicho visited their humble home.

"Hello there," Kohana smiled cheerfully at the taller woman.

"Hello, are you Kohana Hitsugaya-san?"

"Yes I am, please come in."

Unohana entered and saw that the small house was slightly cluttered with items that pointed to a growing baby inhabiting the place. "I apologize deeply if I am intruding."

"Oh, don't be silly, certainly any colleague of Gin and Rangiku is welcomed here," Kohana chuckled as she peered at the Captain's insignia on Unohana's clothes. "Sit down now little lady, have some tea."

Unohana shared a small smile and sat at the modest table as Kohana brewed some tea. Once it was prepared, the smell drifted through the house and Unohana was startled when she saw a flash of white hair.

Kohana smiled again, "Don't mind Toshiro, he'll just pop in and out of here with his toys."

Unohana smiled and nodded nervously. She was slightly apprehensive over the news she had to tell the old woman, but what must be done must be done.

"I am here concerning Toshiro Ichimaru actually."

"Oh? Is there something wrong?"

"Ichimaru-san and Matsumoto-san, as you know, are on a mission. The mission is to gather information and relay it back to Soul Society. However, they encountered a bit of a problem. The group that they were watching discovered them. They don't know Ichimaru-san and Matsumoto-san's names, but they know that they have a son with the name Ichimaru. Ichimaru isn't a common name and they've already deduced that the child would be young. I am here to inform you that these people may be coming after Toshiro-kun."

Kohana looked taken aback and distraught. "Is there anything I can do to protect Toshiro?"

"Yamamoto-Saitaicho sent me with a solution. The best way to protect Toshiro-kun would be to change his name. Does he know that his surname is Ichimaru?"

"He doesn't really know. All he knows is that he's Toshiro."

Unohana nodded slowly, "Yamamoto-Saitaicho ordered that his surname be changed to his caretaker's. He will now be known as Toshiro Hitsugaya."

"Hit-hit-hit-see-gay-A," A little voice echoed, or tried to at least. Kohana turned to see Toshiro with a slice of watermelon in his little hand. A single seed was under his large right eye and his characteristic tuft of white hair obscured his large left eye. "Hit-see-gay-A Two-shoe-row, that ma name is?"

Unohana blinked, "Yes it is actually."

Toshiro scowled slightly before smiling. "Gran-gran, melon please me give?" He looked down to the now demolished slice and smiled again, charming the old lady.

"Come here," Toshiro ran over to her and she gave him a slice from the plate on the table.

"Thank you Gran-gran," The little boy squealed as he went to go play.

"Also, I have something else that you must do to ensure Toshiro's security."

"What is that?"

"You cannot tell him that Matsumoto-san and Ichimaru-san are his parents. We don't want him to accidentally tell anyone."

"I understand," Kohana's face was strained now. Her wrinkles were more pronounced and her eyes glittered in sadness "I don't want to, but if it is for the best."

--

"Unohana-taicho, did Hitsugaya-san take the news well?"

Unohana bowed to Yamamoto and sat down. She looked sad, and then smiled. "Yes, she accepted graciously."

"Did Toshiro-kun find out?"

"He only heard that his last name was changed to Hitsugaya. He was very cute too. He pronounced his name as Hit-see-gay-A Two-shoe-row."

The old captain blinked blankly, "I knew he was special."

--

Toshiro was raised as a Hitsugaya and grew to believe that his parents were dead and Kohana was actually his grandmother. Kohana often felt troubled when it was winter time because Toshiro believed that that was the time at which his parents met their demise. However, a different story played out in the Gotei 13.

Rangiku slowly walked down the corridor as her fingers skimmed the wall. It had been twenty years since that mission, but the group was still after them. Now that they were in Soul Society, they were safe. But Toshiro still needed to be safe, so they couldn't get him from Kohana. Rangiku sighed sadly as she reported back to her rooms. Another though occurred to her- Gin wouldn't be there. During their mission, they came to the agreement that they just weren't meant to be. It was agreed that Rangiku would take care of Toshiro if they _ever_ got him back.

"Lieutenant Matsumoto, there's a hell butterfly in your office!" Rangiku sighed but went back nonetheless. As it turned out, there was a mysterious presence in West Rukongai that they wanted her and some men to investigate the next day.

When morning came, Rangiku and five other members of squad 10 left to West Rukongai to investigate. The moment they stepped foot there, they felt the presence, but just barely. Most of the reports involved the aura coming out at night so she gave orders to just survey the area and at night they would go on a patrol.

Rangiku strolled through the market area when she saw a flash of silver. She turned and saw a young boy with spiky silver hair with a small pouch. The vendor in front of him dumped the boy's change onto the counter and said something- she was too far away to hear it. The boy had a shocked look on his face and took his change and turned around.

"Hey, is that any way to treat your customer!?" The busty red-head shouted at the vendor. The boy crashed into her chest, hit the stand, and then crashed to the ground. Rangiku moved onto the boy, grabbing by the boy's collar and shaking him. "And you, you need to man up and say something!"

The boy glared at her with bright turquoise eyes, "And whose fault is that!? LET ME GO!"

The boy slapped her hand away and ran down the road.

'Such white hair, and those eyes, they're just like Toshiro's,' she thought sadly. A pang of nostalgia hit her deep in her heart as she thought of her lost baby. She gathered wits and returned to her men. They stayed at an inn until night when a cold burst of air rushed through the town.

"Okay guys, let's go. We'll split into three groups! Two go West, East, and North!"

They split and Rangiku left with a new soldier to where the pressure was coming from. "Stay out here." They had stopped before a small hut…and it seemed so familiar for some reason. She entered and saw two figures. One was shivering violently, an old lady she was, and the other seemed to be a child that was tossing and turning. She walked to him and realized that it was the boy from before.

His large eyes snapped open as he took in a large breath. "AH!"

"You should hide your reiatsu when you're sleeping. And doesn't your grandmother look a bit cold?"

"Who are you?"

Rangiku kneeled to his level, "You can hear a voice can't you, in here?" She placed her index finger on the boy's chest. "Powerful children like you should go to Soul Academy to learn how to control your powers. With that power, your grandmother will die before long."

The boy's eyes widened, "Grandma?"

The next day, the boy asked his grandmother if everything was true and Kohana nodded and told him that she would be proud of him should he go to the Academy. Rangiku stood by the door, a bag was nestled in her hands that contained some of the boy's belongings. After a few minutes, Rangiku and her men, with the boy, made their way back to Soul Society, to the Academy, to enroll him.

"Hey boy," Rangiku called out to the boy behind her. The boy jogged up to her and fiddled with the hem of him yukata.

"Yes?"

"What's your name?"

"My name is," The boy paused as his eyes widened a bit, "Toshiro Hitsugaya."


	2. Academy Arc I

**I would like to say thanks to those who've read and reviewed! Those reviews are very much appreciated! Oh, before I forget...if you have and idea or something similar to what you might want to see in this story (or any of my stories, since I'm rewriting them), just tell me in a review and I'll try my absolute best to incorporate them into the next chapter(s)! Moo-wahz!**

**Disclaimer: I find them completely and totally useless...**

**Wait, that was my opinion...damn....**

* * *

Rangiku was in her bedroom; her hands shook as tears ran from her now cloudy blue eyes. She rocked back and forth as sobs broke from her person. But she wasn't crying because of anything negative. On the contrary, she was elated! Her son…he was alive. He was safe. Most of all, he was at the Academy! Feelings of joy ran through but just as suddenly, grief struck. Even though he was safe, there was no way that she could interact with him…it could lead to suspicions…but she _needed_ to see him, to find out all about him. What did he like? What did he hate? What was his favorite color and food? So many questions, and yet, she probably could not get the answers.

A Hell Butterfly flew through her window and landed on her well-manicured finger.

"Ara, the entrance exams are starting in one hour?"

She rose, put on a cheery smile because she would see Toshiro again, and flash-stepped the hell out of there.

"AH, Saitaicho," Rangiku gasped as she stopped short from crashing into the old man. Yamamoto chuckled as he ran a gnarled hand over the head of his walking stick.

"Lieutenant Matsumoto, I've heard of a mysterious white haired boy taking the exams today. I've also heard that you brought him here."

Rangiku bowed and smiled slightly, "I wrote it in my report, but I can report it orally right now if the pleases you."

"Please do," The two walked side by side to the Academy as Rangiku began.

"My team and I left to West Rukongai and immediately we felt the mysterious aura that was reported, however it was faint. Since most of the reports mentioned occurred at night, we waited until then. I went around the town however, to set up a perimeter when a saw a boy with white haired. He had spiritual pressure…but it was unexplainable. At night, the pressure grew immensely and my team split up and left East, West, and North. I followed the pressure and it led directly to a small hut. In the hut was the boy from before, and almost everything had frost on it. The power was immense…and the boy…he was _him_." Rangiku smiled as tears filled her eyes. "I'd thought I would never see him, but he was right in front of me."

Yamamoto placed a hand on her shoulder, silently comforting her. "This is a good turn of fate isn't it? If he passes, and I'm sure he will, there's a chance he might end up in your squad."

Hopeful blue eyes glanced at the Saitaicho, "I hope so. I hope so." She stopped and looked at the looming, gleaming white building that was the Academy. There was a large crowd of people, as usual during the exams, at the gate. The gates opened and everyone came in and headed for the training grounds where the exams were to be held.

--

Toshiro glanced nervously as there were kids _much_ older than him waiting in line. He could see the court barely, but he could see on the far right side was a panel of professors, Captains, and the Saitaicho. Shinigami gathered round that area and created a sea of black and white. Next to them was the Royal Guard, then Kido. The rest of the over two thousand people were civilians who came to watch and support the hopeful applicants.

A thunderous horn sang loudly and the crowd erupted into cheers.

"Welcome to the Shino Academy Entrance Examinations!" Another wave of cheers and shouts echoed. Toshiro felt sick to his stomach, but a cold feeling spread from his heart to his body. It calmed him down as Hyorinmaru spoke to him, clearly this time.

"_Toshiro, do not be scared. There is no need, child. I am here, I am all you need right now."_

'I know…but…what if I mess up, I don't even know half of the stuff these people are talking about!'

"_Listen boy, don't worry. All you have to do is picture what you want to do. If you want, look at what those before you do."_

'Fine,' Toshiro stopped there as the announcements began again.

"Today, all applicants must perform, to some degree, skill in the four basic elements of training. These elements are: Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hoho, and Kido!"

'What are those?'

"_I believe I told you not to worry."_

Toshiro pouted before paying attention again.

"We ask that all audience members please be quiet during the examinations for the applicants to have the utmost focus. We will begin the examinations now!"

The area was dead quiet as a man with long white hair stood up. He grabbed a microphone and spoke calmly.

"We will begin according to the order of numbers. The numbers are ordered 50 to 95 so I ask for everyone's patience during the examinations. Can number 50 please come out?"

A boy, about fourteen years old, stepped out onto the court. He performed all four elements and bowed before quickly leaving.

Toshiro saw that during the Zanjutsu section, he had a sword.

'I DON'T HAVE A STUPID SWORD!!!!! HYORINMARU, YOU SAID THAT I WOULD BE FINE!'

"_You will be fine. Just leave everything to me."_

'But I'm 52! WAH!!! I'M FIFTY TWO, I'M NEXT!!!'

Hyorinmaru did not dignify that with an answer…mainly because he enjoyed seeing the little boy panic. Toshiro's eyes were bright, almost a bright blue in color, as panic settled in his core. He began to slightly shiver as 51 began the Hoho segment, which he did last. Applause echoed quietly enough as the boy left the field.

"Can 52 please enter?"

Toshiro fiddled with the hem of his sleeve of his haori. His gray hakamas (which were what all applicants wore during the exams) fluttered slightly.

"Next is Toshiro Hitsugaya of West Rukongai!" The announcer blared.

Toshiro took a deep breath and let Hyorinmaru guide him.

"You may begin when ready," The white haired man said and smile encouragingly at the nervous boy.

"_Now, feel the cold boy. Let it flow from your fingers."_

Toshiro did as commanded. A light began to form at his finger tips, but it was too dim for everyone to notice.

"I'll start with Hoho," Toshiro said quietly. Before he even finished saying 'Hoho', he was gone. Some of the on-lookers gasped and looked around for him. They saw a flash of gray and white on top of the Academy before it disappeared and Toshiro reappeared in the audience, calmly sitting among the member of the Tenth Division. Rangiku gaped at his speed only for a moment before he disappeared and reappeared by the white haired man before reappearing at his starting point.

The audience applauded him with wild cheers, even though it was only the first segment.

"Next, I'll do Hakuda."

A person came onto the field. It wasn't actually a person; it was a robot, designed by Mayuri Kurotsuchi, to be used in the exams for Hakuda. There was system of nerve-like sensors. If they were hit accurately and with a certain amount of strength, the droid would 'die'.

'I'm going to die.'

"_Nonsense_," Hyorinmaru said. Toshiro sighed and lunged at the droid. He landed two hard punches, one to the stomach and another to the temple before he executed a roundhouse kick. The kick landed on the robots head and the force of the swing knocked it down to the ground. A puff of dust blocked the audience from seeing the end result until it cleared.

…The poor robot never had the chance to get into position to fight back…

The head of the robot was destroyed, wires poured from it and the body twitched as electricity ran through it.

Kurotsuchi cried out in anguish at his invention and wailed over how it never had the chance to live. Toshiro looked sheepish as he bowed to the odd looking captain.

"I'm sorry!" He called out. "I'll do Kido now?"

The white haired man nodded and Toshiro could feel Hyorinmaru stir.

"_Now then, I want you to wrap a rope around that manikin, understand? When you do, I want you to move it away from you. Once you do that, create a barrier around us."_

Toshiro closed his eyes and pictured a rope around the dummy and used his fingers to cast it. He pulled on the glowing yellow rope and then pushed it away. The manikin flew into the far left corner of the court. He pulled it back towards him and as it came rushing, he pictured a glowing dome protecting him. The manikin burst into a barrage of wood splinters and hay as it collided with the barrier.

"Last is Zanjutsu." Toshiro scowled deeply, 'With a sword I _don't_ even have.'

"_Quite the opposite child, it's time for our true power to show."_

Toshiro felt peace, like a huge wave of it crashed over him.

--

Juushiro Ukitake, yup- he was the white haired man, held his chest as an indescribable amount of spiritual pressure compressed the entire area. He felt like he was choking to death. His eyes scanned the audience and saw everyone being compressed by it. His eyes widened as he was Yamamoto nearly kneeling, his hands clutched his walking stick until his knuckles were white. He looked back at Toshiro and managed to gasp at what he saw.

The boy's hands were encased in ice. He slowly parted them and a string of ice connected the two hands and grew longer and thicker the further the hands were parted. To Ukitake's amazement, the ice began to form a crude sword. The boy spread his arms until he could not do so anymore and lifted the long piece of ice. It continued to grow until it was taller than he was.

The oppressing pressure grew and it molded the ice to look like an actual sword. A flash of bright light erupted and blinded everyone. When they regained their eyesight, a finely crafted metal blade glinted in the sun.

"Hyorinmaru," Toshiro called. A flash of light occurred again and this time, another manikin met its demise when a crescent shape blade extended from the hilt of the sword to cut it in half.

"Sit upon the Frozen Heavens," Toshiro whispered. He swung his blade and an immense dragon formed from it. Hyorinmaru roared and circled the entire Academy. Its large ice body was around one hundred feet above the school and looked at the tiny bodies beneath it with large red eyes. It roared and vibrations shook the ground. Hyorinmaru spread his wings and roared again before he dissolved into a fine mist.

Toshiro let his blade fall to his hip and he bowed.

All was quiet before everyone erupted into pure screams and raving applause. Toshiro blushed lightly and left the court with his small feet running quickly.

When he arrived back to the waiting, numbers 53, 67, 74, 75, 81, 82, and 90 were talking to the officials. The officials looked annoyed and flustered at once at the children's faces of pure horror. One the officials nodded slowly and waved towards a door behind him. The children ran out of the door quickly and the man wrote something down. He waved over someone that Toshiro knew was in the 60's and gave him the paper. The boy ran out another door and Toshiro saw him on the courts by Ukitake. He gave the paper to him before bowing and running away.

Ukitake looked shocked before he calmed down and caught everyone's attention via microphone.

"Excuse me everyone, it seems there has been a slight change in the exams. Numbers 53, 67, 74, 75, 81, 82, and 90 have chosen to not take the exams. We will resume the examination immediately."

Murmurs ran through the crowd at the development…what could have caused this?

Toshiro glanced around to see others staring at him. A girl walked up to him wearing a Shinigami uniform. She had short black hair with a tuft of it hanging in the middle of her eyes.

"You scared them off you know," She said in a dry voice. The snow child blinked cutely (which he MOSST CERTAINLY was not) and pointed to himself.

"_I_ scared them off?"

"Your performance was the best that anyone has seen this year, last year, over the past few decades. You're insanely powerful, that scares them." She jerked a thumb to the peanut gallery behind them.

'I didn't mean to."

"It doesn't matter; I didn't come here to tell you that. I came to say congratulations. With scores like that, this exam would be obviously fixed if you didn't get accepted into the Academy."

Toshiro nodded and bowed, "Thank you very much."

--

Juushiro Ukitake coughed lightly as he watched Toshiro walk ahead of him. While Toshiro was here, he stayed with Ukitake in the Thirteenth Division. They were on their way to the Academy to look at the results of the previous week's exams to see if Toshiro passed. Ukitake already knew that answer. Nevertheless, Toshiro wanted to go so the sickly man obliged him.

As they arrived at the wall where a medium sized list was posted, Ukitake blinked. Normally there were two huge lists with the names of those accepted…this was…puny in comparison.

All around them, hopeful would-be students cried into their parents' embraces as they didn't see their names- this signified that they hadn't passed. Ukitake managed to squeeze the two of them up front and lifted the small boy up to look at the list. The list was ordered so that the top scorer was first and the last person scored the lowest. The scores were also reported by the four categories tested. It was graded on a scale of 50.

"I can't find my name!" Toshiro whined slightly as he looked for his name. Ukitake looked up and saw that he was looking near the bottom of the list.

"Look at the top of the list." He suggested while he shifted his grip. Toshiro raised his head and his eye widened as he saw the first name: his name.

"**Hitsugaya Toshiro: 50/50, 50/50, 50/50, 50/50**, I got perfect scores!" He finished reading an looked down. Ukitake set him down and smiled.

"Congratulations," He beamed at the proud look on the boy's face.

"I have to tell Grandma!"

"The Academy doesn't start for another two months for the new class; you can go back and visit."

The snow boy grabbed the snow man and made a run for his division so he could pack. "I have to tell Ms. Matsumoto too!"

"Why?"

"Well, she brought me here because she said that I should learn about my powers, I owe it to her that I'm here right?"

"I suppose so," Ukitake said with a hand in Toshiro's head.


End file.
